The high-energy accelerator, providing high amount of kinetic energy to positrons by acceleration, is utilized in the research and medical (such as cancer treatment) fields. In this type of high-energy accelerators, such as multiple of continuous deflection electromagnets or quadrupole electromagnets are installed for the positron beam control.
The schematic of the high-energy accelerator is shown in FIG. 14. In this schematic, the positron is the subject for the acceleration. As shown in the figure, high energy beams are provided to each room 205 by passing through the synchrotron 203, multiple of beam transporting line 204 after generated by the positron generating device 202. The multiple of electromagnets such as sextupole electromagnets 206, quadrupole electromagnets 207, and deflection electromagnet 208 are installed in the synchrotron 203 and beam transporting lines 204. The number of the electromagnets depends upon the specifications and size of the high energy accelerator, however, some system has 20 or more electromagnets are installed with in. It is essential to make a precise alignment of the proton beam's actual path as designed since even a slight deflection of the circular path of the high energy accelerator 201 from the desired path will not produce high precision energy. So multiple of adjustment bolts for the electromagnets are provided for the precise position adjustment of the high beam path with the fine adjustment of the bolts.
Conventional position adjustment method follows the steps of measuring the position and posture of the electromagnets within the high energy beam transporting line relative to the reference point of the building, selecting the subjective adjustment bolts and made adjustment if the equipment is not within a certain range of the specifications. However, since the specifications, size and layout of the electromagnets became more complicates, the adjustment of one bolt largely influenced or completely no influence to the entire system. It therefore required an enormous amount of workload and time for the adjustment by repeating the trials and errors, in the adjustment utilizing the adjustment bolts that have different shape and weight respectively in complicated layouts.
It has been desired to invent the alignment method to make the electromagnets of the high energy accelerator to be on the dully position accurately with a simple way. From such a view point, the new technologies have been proposed such as described in the Japanese Laid-open publications JP1996-163197A, JP1999-214198A, and JP2000-208300A, and a Japanese Patent Number 3190923.
In the high-energy accelerator disclosed in the above references, the multiple of adjustment bolts for the electromagnets in the horizontal directions (X and Y axis) and ones for the vertical direction (Z axis) are installed and alignment has been done with them. This alignment method is adjusting the electromagnet to the predetermined position and posture by rotating the multiple of adjustment bolts that seem necessary to do so by checking the position and posture relative to the building reference point within the building.
The actual adjustments of this type have a difficulty in reality since it largely depends upon the individual experience of the operators since they make the adjustment manually. For example, whether or not a horizontal adjustment bolt should touch upon the electromagnet is not predetermined when we operate a certain vertical adjustment bolt. Even in case of the tightening, the amount of tightness is not predetermined. In case of the horizontal adjustment bolts are left free (or the tightness is small), the contact between the vertical adjustment bolt and the electromagnet is not a perfect point contact condition; the load condition of the vertical adjustment bolts supporting the electromagnet and the center of gravity of the magnet are not even; therefore, the electromagnet is shifted horizontally due to the rotation of the adjustment bolt caused by the friction force. Since the electromagnet moves unexpectedly, the alignment of it is not easy. And if horizontal adjustment bolts are too tight, the electromagnet wouldn't move at all even though the vertical adjustment bolt is turned. Further more, in case that one horizontal adjustment bolt is rotated for adjustment, same thing could happen as the aforementioned vertical adjustment bolt.
As described above, as the adjustment operation of the position and posture of the electromagnet repeat the trial and error by making small movement of the adjustment bolts to reach to the target point, the installation time of each electromagnet is deviated and unpredictable; therefore it may largely influence to the total time schedule of the accelerator construction.
It is not necessary to obtain the quantitative measurement information since the amount of the adjustment depends upon the skill of the operator. However, it is desirable to calculate each alignment amounts of the adjustment bolts quantitatively, by inputting the data obtained from the various measuring devices for improving the efficiency of the alignment operation.
In any situation, the abovementioned conventional alignment method had a problem that it required large amount of time for the adjustment operation through the trail and error since the positions and the adjustment amounts of the adjustment bolts are not precisely determined.